Service Dog Opportunity...Ideas?

[Bailey's Mom]

Hello All, recently I re-.certified for my St. John Ambulance First Aid, and the opportunity came up to enlist Bailey in the service dog program. I have three months to get her used to wearing a harness as they don't allow their dogs to wear gentle leaders. (Bailey hates her gentle leader.)

I have no experience with harnesses, but I know the members here do. Ideas? Brands? Recommendations? Warnings? I seem to recall that some can cause nerve compressions. So I'm in your hands.

Oh, and if any of you are involved with the St. John program, I would appreciate your input. They won't even start reviewing her until I switch successfully to the harness or leash, but with leash she likes to pull too much.

Thanks

 

[Boxergirl]

Service dog or therapy dog? Service dogs are dogs that perform a duty for their handler and are allowed in all stores, restaurants, etc. Think guide dogs, seizure alert dogs, etc. Therapy dogs do not have the same rights. They are the ones that visit schools, hospitals, etc. Can it be any kind of harness? Do you want front hook? Back hook? Both? Do you need to be able to attach a patch to the harness for identification? How big is Bailey?

 

[Bailey's Mom]

Thank you for helping Boxer Girl. Bailey is approximately 115-120 lbs. We haven't weighed her recently, but I know she's put on weight this winter. She'll be four in April. And, yes, I stand corrected, it is a therapy dog position. She would be visiting seniors' residences/nursing homes and perhaps children's hospitals. She might be called to come to visit schools and classrooms. It's a long process and she'll have up to 300 interviews with changing circumstances to test out her suitability.

I know that she would love to have a job. She is very outgoing and happy to meet people and other pets. And she is so gentle around elderly relatives who are quite sick. So Gentle! She has an exceptionally soft mouth and you never feel anything other than her lips as she takes a treat. Bailey also likes small children...she's not so hot on the bigger more boisterous kids, but, she loves the ones that are at eye-level, and the feeling is mutual with the kids around here. So...I think she'd be good at it.

As for front hook or back hook, I don't know, which one will give me the most control...she does like to pull when she sees someone or some dog she wants to meet.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

Oh, yes, I forgot. She will have to wear a St. John Ambulance Vest.

 

[Boxergirl]

I thought you may have meant therapy dog. I can tell you my preferences for harnesses and hopefully someone else will chime in. For control and comfort I like the Freedom Harness. It has a front and back attachment and velvet lined strap under the front legs. You can also get it with a special leash to hook to both attachments at the same time. I also have my eye on a Perfect Fit Harness. I like the look and that it's fleece lined. I also like that it's modular so you order each piece separately to get the best fit for your dog. I'm saving my $$ to try one for my boxers. It's really difficult to get a harness that fits them correctly with their odd measurements. I also like the Ruffwear Front Range harness for my boxers, but I don't really like the fit on my mastiff.

Just FYI, the harnesses I mentioned aren't made like the Easy Walk where it pinches the shoulders together when the dog pulls. I don't like those. They don't fit well and I don't like how easily they can slip down and inhibit correct front end movement. They also made my dogs very uncomfortable if they had them on in the car by sliding too far down their chest. The ones mentioned above aren't made like the Easy Walk, so they won't offer a self-correction in the same way when the dog pulls.

Hector has posted some really nice looking harnesses in the past. I hope she gives you some ideas too.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

Hi Boxergirl, I've got them written down and will phone around today to see if they are carried or if they have to be ordered in special. Southwest Pet has been really good about ordering stuff in for us. I really appreciate it. Thanks, again. I'll let you know how it works out.

 

[Nik]

I second Boxergirl's recommendation of the Freedom Harness. It is what we use with Diesel and I absolutely love it. I got mine on Amazon. You can even get it with a leash that comes with it and attaches to both the front and back clasp.

We have an easy walk for Kahlua but only because it was Diesel's before we switched to Freedom Harness. I don't care for it too much but Kahlua doesn't really pull or try to drag us like Diesel did when he was learning so it works okay for her. Eventually I will upgrade her to freedom harness though because I like it better.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

Thanks Nik. I PM'd Hector and she got back to me with good advice, too. I'm going to work on this because I think it will enrich Bailey's life. She's so very gentle with the old and the young, BUT...she goes turbo on me when she wants to visit with dogs or people and I get dragged. I'm no lightweight, but she has four wheel drive and, she is a STUBBORN Mastiff. I've heard all Mastiffs are Stubborn.

I have no idea why St. Johns doesn't allow dogs on Halti/Gentle Leader, but maybe it's because it suggests that they aren't controllable. They require docile animals that love being around humans and allow lots of petting. They also have to be able to take a treat very gently. Bailey is so soft mouthed, it's like feeling a butterfly's wing touch you.

So...here we go! Wish me luck!.

 

[Hector]

Thanks Nik. I PM'd Hector and she got back to me with good advice, too. I'm going to work on this because I think it will enrich Bailey's life. She's so very gentle with the old and the young, BUT...she goes turbo on me when she wants to visit with dogs or people and I get dragged. I'm no lightweight, but she has four wheel drive and, she is a STUBBORN Mastiff. I've heard all Mastiffs are Stubborn.

I have no idea why St. Johns doesn't allow dogs on Halti/Gentle Leader, but maybe it's because it suggests that they aren't controllable. They require docile animals that love being around humans and allow lots of petting. They also have to be able to take a treat very gently. Bailey is so soft mouthed, it's like feeling a butterfly's wing touch you.

So...here we go! Wish me luck!.

Bailey's Mom, something cheap to try is to look up the thunder leash on google images. You can do this with a regular leash and collar. Try both ways, with the leash wrapped around the chest and around the belly. If the dog only pulls when excited and walks well other times then this might be a cheap fix temporarily or even a long term solution if the dog stops pulling all together. Good luck.

 

[Boxergirl]

Hector is right. The leash trick really does work. I haven't tried the thunder leash, but the principle is the same.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

My neighbour does this with her Border Collie sometimes, and it does keep him under control when he is especially rammy.

Thanks for the suggestion.

Oh, and, Hector, we tried the prong collar when we first had the pulling issue, but we encountered a deal breaking issue. Bailey started to super salivate...the goober just poured out and the vet said it was caused by the collar irritating a nerve in her throat. The poor thing was in terrible distress.

The prong was a great tool for the Rottie and Dogo, but I can't use it on the girl. And I think it might give the wrong impression, too. I'm going to try the freedom harness and work on her compliance. I actually think she'll like it...she really hates her gentle leader.

 

[Boxergirl]

My neighbour does this with her Border Collie sometimes, and it does keep him under control when he is especially rammy.

Thanks for the suggestion.

Oh, and, Hector, we tried the prong collar when we first had the pulling issue, but we encountered a deal breaking issue. Bailey started to super salivate...the goober just poured out and the vet said it was caused by the collar irritating a nerve in her throat. The poor thing was in terrible distress.

The prong was a great tool for the Rottie and Dogo, but I can't use it on the girl. And I think it might give the wrong impression, too. I'm going to try the freedom harness and work on her compliance. I actually think she'll like it...she really hates her gentle leader.

Things may have changed, but back when I was training my Ed to be a therapy dog none of the organizations would allow a prong to be used. Or a slip collar. Only a harness or a flat buckle.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

I'm asking them for further clarification, but I believe the harness is the preferred route. I'll let you know how it's going.

Oh, Boxergirl, were there any guidelines for how often you had to bath the dog before they could be used as therapy dogs? I didn't see anything in what they sent me, but, my sister said she heard it was a bath a week...? That seems extreme. Let me know what you encountered, please.

 

[Boxergirl]

I don't recall ever hearing about a bathing requirement. That seems extreme to me too. My dogs only get a bath if they start to get smelly or they get into something and are dirty. The boys have sensitive skin. I can't imagine how dry their skin would be if I bathed them once a week.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

I took Bailey to a party today. Lots of people milling about and putting their hands on her. Great practice for being out meeting new people as a therapy dog. Everyone was surprised at how calm she is in a crowd. After she visited with everyone, she lay down in between the chairs. Well...first she mooched enough cheese and pita chips to feed a small army. So, she has already matched the first two absolutes: she's calm in crowds and noisy environments, and, she is able to take treats from hands gently.

I'm going to take every opportunity to get her out in crowds so she can practice her sweetness. I often take her into TSC so she can shop and visit with the staff, she's a favorite there. We have several other stores that are dog friendly and she loves the attention so we take her in as many as possible. I thank God she's such a social butterfly...I think she'll make a terrific therapy dog.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

Wow, Bailey's first exposure to the harness was a success! I was given an Easy Walk harness to try...it isn't perfect, but she took to it like a duck to water. So, we'll see over the next few weeks if this continues as a calming influence. But, so far, so good.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

Update on harness training. Well, Bailey is a star! Of course we all knew it. She has taken to the harness so well that there is almost no pulling at all. I'm going to have to find a better fitting one, but for now, I am pleased. The only time she has pulled recently was to get to the neighbour kids, she loves them! And on the walk yesterday, she met a lot of eye-level kids (her favourite) and she wanted so badly to join them, but, no sense alarming their moms. I just tell them she's very gentle, but she might knock them over just bumping into them.

So, now on to training a few tricks. She needs to be able to show the people she's visiting that she's a very talented and gentle giant. Ideas?

 

[Hector]

That's great Bailey's Mom on the harness!

Tricks, what is easy for Bailey? What is she good at right now. Tendency to paw? Likes to hold things in her mouth? Can balance treats on her head? Try to work with what skills she already has and go from there. Some easy ones are like hand touch, spin, wave, kiss, catch (food). Let us know when she gets some tricks on her resume LOL.

 

[Bailey's Mom]

Well, she can speak on command, and she'll jump up and put her paws on your chest or shoulders for a treat. She shakes paw...both paws, and she gives dry kisses where she presses her mussel to your face. She can lay down, sit, stay and she plays search for mommy or daddy. That's it. I think I'll try spin,we are half way there.